A Sweet Surprise

Yesterday's mail brought a sweet surprise from dear Becky.  She made me the cutest pin pillow. The design is Proud Lil Pumpkin by The Sweetheart Tree.  I just love the button that Becky used in the middle.  I treasure this little token of our friendship.

A couple of weeks ago, I saw a beautiful pair of Dovo scissors on Staci's blog.  I e-mailed her to ask her where she had purchased them.  It is a limited design, but I was able to find a needlepoint shop in the state of Washington that still had a couple pairs of them for sale.  They came in my mail yesterday and I think they are a super addition to my growing collection.

Thanks for stopping by my blog.  Please come back later this week because I'm going to be posting about some beautiful gifts that I received from my dear friend Arcadia in France.  You're going to be wowed by her handiwork :)

Autumn House Exchange

This is the lovely exchange that I received from Wanda for the Autumn House Exchange on the SBEBB. She stitched "Bittersweet Moon" from Blackbird Designs and finished it at a stand-up. I really like the design, especially the checkered pattern of the house. It must have been a lot of work! I appreciate the amount of time she put in to making this wonderful exchange. It serves as a fantastic decoration for this time of year. :)

I heard from Becky K that she received the exchange that I sent to her, also from the Autumn House Exchange on the SBEBB. I stitched her the bottom portion of The Prairie Schooler's "Pumpkin Patch" and finished it as a two-sided pin keep (minus the pins).

Linette's Birthday Gift

About a year ago, I left a comment on Linette's blog about a Christmas design that she and several ladies were doing as a SAL. To my surprise, she gave me a response about the design and offered to send it to me! Since then, we've formed a friendship, and although I speak almost no French, and she speaks very little English, we manage to communicate with the help of Google's translator feature.

Linette celebrated her birthday on the 25th of last month. Here is a picture of what I stitched for her special day.

She sent me a lovely gift for my birthday back in May and I never shared it here on my blog. Here are a couple of pictures of the lovely thread book that she made for me complete with floss which she hand dyed herself.

Vonna's Ornament

Vonna received the ornament that I made for her in today's mail. This one was a little hard to send away, but I know that Vonna and her family are going to give it a terrific home.

I made it especially with her young children in mind. I have great memories of special ornaments that I loved as a child, and I'm hoping this one will become a favorite of her family.

Back From a Hiatus!

It's been quite a long time since I have posted on this blog. I've been stitching, but I can't show any pictures, just to keep things under wraps. :)  

I did get a message from Kendra that she received the Fair and Square 

Halloween Round that I mailed her on Monday.

I received the squares she stitched for me a couple of weeks ago and I really like them.  We both stitched the same border for our squares!  How's that for a coincidence?  

Cross Country Stitching and An Exchange

Annemarie was wondering out loud on her blog why more stitcher's don't like Cross Country Stitching Magazine. I am a fan of this publication, and have been admiring the design below for a year or more. I know to some it probably looks cluttered and junky, but it really appeals to me. I hope that I'll actually be able to stitch it some day.


BeckyK received her first seasonal exchange from me yesterday. I stitched up this cute design from The Prairie Schooler. It is great being paired with Becky for this year-long exchange because we're both avid fans of PS, and they have some wonderful seasonal designs. Here are a couple pictures of what I sent her.



Thanks so much for visiting my blog. I really appreciate the comments that you leave; they really help to brighten my day.

Another Round Finished for the Little House Needleworks RR

I wanted to share the square that I just finished for the LHN Round Robin that I'm participating in. This particular piece belongs to Debbi (I don't think she has a blog). It was a fun one to stitch, but it seemed to take me FOREVER! It will now make its way to the talented Joan for her to stitch a square.



Thanks for stopping by. I hope you all have a great week.

A Gift for Becky and a Blooming Amaryllis

I stitched this up for Becky two weekends ago and finished it this past weekend. It was my daughter's idea to finish it as a key hanger. I hope that the bright colors will bring a bit of cheer to our dear friend.



This second picture is of the amaryllis that Justine's boyfriend gave her when she was a freshman in college. She will be starting her junior year in August, and this is the first time that it has bloomed. We were all very happy about that, because for the longest time, it only had leaves.



Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy lives to visit my blog. I appreciate your kindness.

Zach Turns 7

Today is Zach's (our whippet) 7th birthday! My daughter Andrea baked special birthday cakes, using a dog-friendly recipe, for him. She found the recipe for the Peanut Butter Delight Cake online.

Zach resting on the morning of his birthday.

While the cakes were in the oven, Owen, our greyhound, trotted into the kitchen with his nose raised high. He was very curious as to where the delicious smell was coming from. He paced back and forth in front of the oven, excitedly, until he was shooed away by Andrea, who reassured him he would get a taste of the treats later on.

After the cakes were done baking, Andrea garnished her creations like any good pastry chef. The cake on the blue plate was for the birthday boy Zach, and the cake on the green plate went to Owen.

The dogs ate the cakes outside in the backyard in order to prevent a big mess. Owen instantly gobbled down his share while Zach daintily savored his culinary delight.





It was fun to watch them enjoy their treats so much. :) Even better, there are left-overs that will be enjoyed again with as much excitement as the first time.

Zach licking his crumb-laden chops.

Celebrate Summer

These are the squares I sent to Gaby for the summer round of Fair and Square. They were a joy to stitch!

I hope you are all enjoying the summer!